1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a winding and reeling device for an elongated, flexible member, including a casing and a reel means arranged in said casing, including further a spiral spring adapted to rotationally bias said reel means in its take-up rotational direction, which said spiral spring is provided with an inner end and an outer end, which said outer end of said spiral spring is connected to said reel means and which said inner end of said spiral spring is connected by the intermediary of a gear means to said outer end of said spiral spring, whereby said gear means causes upon rotation of said outer end of said spiral spring around its center axis at a first rotational speed said inner end of said spiral spring to rotate around said center axis with a second, slower rotational speed.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Such devices which are provided with a spiral spring biassing a reel are commonly known. Known are for instance applications comprising measuring tapes, leashes for dogs and also electrical cables which can be wound on a reel such as for instance in vacuum cleaners for domestic application.
It is generally known that commonly available spiral springs specifically such spiral springs used for above mentioned applications feature a certain relationship regarding an optimal application thereof between the space occupied by the released spring and the space occupied by the material of the spring itself, that is if such spring is wound that all its turns contact each other. The relationship is such that the space occupied by the material as such of the spring (if the spring is completely tightened that all its turns touch itself) amounts to for instance one-third of such space which is occupied by the released spring such for instance in the spring casing. Consequently, the casing for the spring must comprise an increasingly larger space or volume, the larger the length of the member is which is to be wound upon the reel. Obviously, the casing for the spring occupies a considerable volume by long weblike members such as measuring tapes, such that its volume and weight will be considerably large resulting in a difficult handling of such device.